Celtics 89, Pistons 81: Bring on L.A.

Saturday

May 31, 2008 at 12:01 AMMay 31, 2008 at 2:08 AM

Twenty-one long years after their last trip to the NBA Finals, the Boston Celtics have finally returned to center stage. Just like old times, it will be the Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers competing for the championship beginning Thursday night at the TD Banknorth Garden. Thanks to a stirring fourth-quarter rally last night, the Celtics won their first Eastern Conference title since 1987, stunning the Detroit Pistons in Game 6 and silencing a crowd of 22,076 with an 89-81 victory.

Jim Fenton

Twenty-one long years after their last trip to the NBA Finals, the Boston Celtics have finally returned to center stage.

Just like old times, it will be the Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers competing for the championship beginning Thursday night at the TD Banknorth Garden.

Thanks to a stirring fourth-quarter rally last night, the Celtics won their first Eastern Conference title since 1987, stunning the Detroit Pistons in Game 6 and silencing a crowd of 22,076 with an 89-81 victory.

They came back from a 10-point deficit in the final 10 minutes with Paul Pierce leading the way to take the series. The Celtics, who had lost six straight road games to open the playoffs, won twice in the Detroit suburb and will renew their rivalry with the Lakers.

The Celtics and Lakers played three times in the 1980s when Larry Bird and Magic Johnson were the stars of the show, and now the cast of characters will be completely different.

"Right now, I'm emotionally drained," said Pierce after scoring 12 of his 27 points in the final quarter. "I can't put it into words. It feels so good.

"It's been a long process. I could write a whole book on my emotions right now. I'm just happy to be in this position, still with the Boston Celtics. It makes me think about a year ago today what I was doing. To be in this position with the same team, it's nothing I can put into words."

After being forced to Game 7 by the Atlanta Hawks and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the opening two rounds, the Celtics took out the Pistons, making their sixth straight appearance in the conference finals, in six games

John Havlicek presented the Celtics the conference championship trophy after the game, one night after Jerry West gave the Lakers their trophy.

Ray Allen added 17 points, getting 13 of them in the first half, Garnett scored 16 points and Rajon Rondo had 11. The Pistons were led by Chauncey Billups with 29 and Richard Hamilton, who scored 21 points after suffering a hyperextended right elbow in Game 5.

Making only their second trip to the conference finals in 20 years, the Celtics pushed aside their playoff road woes. The Celtics had lost six straight road games before winning Game 3 here last Saturday night.

After the Pistons closed out the third quarter with a furious 20-6 run and opened a 70-60 lead early in the fourth quarter, it appeared the Celtics were headed for another Game 7 tomorrow night.

But the Celtics turned to Pierce, and the captain led the Celtics back to the Finals. The Pistons were outscored, 29-13 in the fourth quarter with their season on the line as the Celtics turned up their defense and took control.

"I just wanted to keep my poise," said Pierce. "I started thinking about previous games where the games were close in the fourth quarter and wanted to make sure we had good shots every time down.

"This is the best fourth quarter, especially being down, all playoff run. We kept our composure, got the ball to the right people, we knocked down shots. My teammates did a great job of looking for me when I got in a position to score.

"I thought that this is 12 minutes to a tremendous opportunity. I didn't want to go back to Boston for another Game 7."

The Celtics went on a 10-0 run early in the fourth quarter to make it 70-70, and the Pistons led just one more time the rest of the way, 74-72, on a Jason Maxiell basket with six minutes to go.

Pierce gave the Celtics a 75-74 lead when he scored on a drive as part of a three-point play with 5:25 to go, and a Pierce jumper after a Rasheed Wallace turnover made it 77-74 with 4:51 left.

Wallace then missed a layup attempt, and Pierce hit two foul shots, giving him seven straight points and the Celtics a 79-74 lead.

Wallace and Garnett traded inside baskets, making it 81-76, and after Wallace missed a 3-pointer, Rondo scored from the corner, giving the Celtics an 83-76 lead with 2:32 remaining. The open jumper by Rondo, who was just 5-of-13, turned out to be the one that sealed it for the Celtics.

"We talked before the game this was going to be the toughest win of the year," said Coach Doc Rivers. "There was going to be a time we were going to be down. We couldn't worry about where we were at. We just had to play through it.

"I guess if you're going to go to the Finals, I don't think you can script it a better way."

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